A respiratory device, such as an apnea machine, is commonly employed for administering inhalation therapy to patients suffering from respiratory disorders, such as sleep apnea disorder.
A typical respiratory device includes an air generating chamber that includes an air pump for constantly generating pressurized air. Further, the respiratory device includes a delivery hose operatively connected to the air generating chamber. The delivery hose transfers the pressurized air generated in the air generating chamber to an interface worn by a patient. The interface may either be in the form of an air-tight face mask or in the form of a lip-seal mouthpiece. The interface may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as a “mouthpiece.”
It has been observed that with time, the delivery hose of the respiratory device gets contaminated with particulate matter, when the respiratory device is not in operation. The term “particulate matter,” as used herein, refers to dust mites, ash particles, smoke residues, dander, and other such contaminants, which may be present in the air.
Use of a contaminated delivery hose may prove hazardous for patients using the respiratory device. Specifically, the particulate matter may intermix with the pressurized air flowing through the delivery hose. Consequently, the patients may inhale the particulate matter along with the pressurized air through the mouthpiece. Accordingly, various protection systems have been developed to prevent the contamination of delivery hoses and to protect mouthpieces of various respiratory devices, including apnea machines.
However, the protection systems developed so far suffer from various shortcomings. Typically, the protection systems are incapable of completely preventing the entry of the particulate matter into the delivery hoses. Moreover, the protection systems are difficult to manufacture and use because of complex arrangements thereof. In addition, the protection systems are cost-ineffective because of the use of expensive materials to manufacture the protection systems.
Accordingly, there is a need to develop a protection system that prevents the entry of particulate matter in a delivery hose of a respiratory device (such as an apnea machine) and protects a mouthpiece of the respiratory device from the particulate matter. Further, there is a need for a protection system that is easy to manufacture and use. Furthermore, there is a need for a protection system that is inexpensive to manufacture.